Is Brett Cecil a prime example of why you don't pay premiums for relievers? Before the season started he was looking at a giant off-season contract. Now all he has going for him is "am lefty can pitch"

august fagerstrom

12:52

Sure. And Andrew Miller is a prime example of why you do

J

12:52

At what point do we consider a high or low LOB% a skill? We know pitchers can hold runners to varying levels and some get more outs but what about the guys that perform really well/awful from the stretch?

august fagerstrom

12:53

Three years seems like a fair amount of time. If a pitcher runs a LOB% a standard deviation or more above/below league-average, good chance there might be something there

Jim Lonborg

12:54

Um, Andrew Miller tried being a starter and it didn't go well. I doubt he'd be eager to give it another shot. Let us not forget the ghost of Daniel Bard. . .

august fagerstrom

12:54

I'm aware of this, and it's certainly not something I'd actually suggest. But when Andrew Miller was a starter, he hadn't figured out how to pitch the way Andrew Miller is currently pitching. His delivery was completely different, he had no feel for his slider whatsoever, and he threw a bunch of other crappy pitches

12:55

What I'm saying is, hypothetically, what would reliever Andrew Miller, who commands his slider to the same area of the zone 60% of the time with his new, efficient delivery, look like if he stretched out to be a starter?

12:56

Just a fun thought. Feels like he could be an above-average starter. Whether he could provide more value in that role than he does currently as a reliever, I'm not as sure

Julio Pepper

12:56

So, another Hall of Fame question. Cano has 48 fWAR at 33 and looks to be on the path. He has almost 60 bWAR, which makes him close to a lock. I know they use different defensive metrics, but this seems like an enormous gap. I think he gets in easy; any thoughts on this?

august fagerstrom

12:56

Cano Kinsler and Pedroia are kind of all in the same boat. As long as none of them collapse and they all play 4-5 more years, they'll all be right on the cusp

12:57

Let's say one of them ages really well and makes it easy, one collapses and makes it easy, and the other is a really tough decision that we all bitch and moan about a decade from now

Dock Ellis

12:57

Altitude Disc Golf update: yep, discs are definitely more overstable here. Maybe it flies a little further too but that's no confirmed.

august fagerstrom

12:57

This is awesome

12:57

And probably frustrating when you're actually on the course

Snarfle

12:59

Too early to be excited by New Buxton? Normal answer is yes, but has he ever had a stretch like this in the majors?

august fagerstrom

12:59

I mean, he had 3 homers in his first 109 games, and then has had 3 homers in his last 5 games

1:00

So no, he's never had a stretch like this

1:00

Add to that the four homers he hit in a row in AAA two weeks ago, and yeah, consider me excited

JIm

1:00

The Jays and Boston play each other 6 more times this year - look into your crystal ball and tell me how those 6 games shake out

august fagerstrom

1:00

exciting!

Julio Pepper

1:02

Can you name more than 10 pitchers you'd rather start a single game than Rich Hill?

august fagerstrom

1:02

Assuming no blister issue whatsoever?

1:03

KershawFernandezScherzerSyndergaardSal

1:03

Those 5 for sure

1:03

Sale*

1:03

Probably Kluber

1:03

Maybe Bumgarner

1:04

And then Hill is right there, IMO

1:04

So, no. I don't think I can

EvanC

1:05

Robinson Cano has a leg up on those guys. I don't care what fWAR says. bWAR considers him easily best player of the three.

august fagerstrom

1:05

what if I don't care what bWAR says?

1:05

(I do. But I think you consider all the information, and don't just discard some of it because "reasons")

1:09

Sorry for the delay. Had to take an important phone call real quick

A cat

1:09

When you look at the 15 and 16 graphs for JBJ's offensive production, there are almost identical 35 game spikes. Is it a pattern you need to consider on projections, like that is flukey and would lower your estimates accordingly?

august fagerstrom

1:09

That's random

1:09

Or at least: I feel very comfortable in saying that's random

Ben

1:10

Tebow to Braves seems like it's gonna happen. As a Braves fan, part of me wants to be embarrassed, but another part of me wants to just say "eh, he'll probably suck and be gone within a year or so, so whatever".....

august fagerstrom

1:10

A National League team would be a surprise to me

1:10

Figured he'd wind up in an AL org so that left field wouldn't be a must-have

1:10

Really want the Astros or Blue Jays hitting guys to get their hands on him